The aim of this study is to examine the tension between 'commerce and culture' in the dynamic development of the Australian children's publishing industry, within the wider context of international children's publishing history. It aims to refute a commonly stated 'truism' - that the conflict between the cultural value of a book and the need to market it threatens the integrity of the authors, publishers and the books themselves. Instead, it demonstrates that the tension between cultural and commercial definitions of the book publisher's role lies at the heart of the dynamism which has fuelled the development of a publishing climate, and created really innovative publishing. Publishing has too often been examined as if the sole motive of the publisher should be to produce books of quality, and though this is certainly the primary objective of the publishers which are the focus in this study, it is imperative to recognize that the dissemination of 'quality' literature and cultural product has always been dependent upon the recognition of commercial strategies which are often naively dismissed as being opportunistic and even extraneous to the publisher's purpose. As this thesis endeavours to show, the pioneering efforts of John Newbery, the Religious Tract Society, E.W. Cole, Ward, Lock & Co., and Australia's first publisher Angus & Robertson and of later publishers such as Penguin, Scholastic, Lothian, Omnibus, Allen & Unwin and others, were founded just as much upon the shrewd recognition of a viable market as they were upon the aim to enrich young readers' lives. In fact it is the symbiotic partnership between these two objectives which has fuelled their successes and their failures. It is where publishers either steer a path paved only with good intentions or one paved entirely with gold that their enterprises generally falter. The study owes a significant debt to the achievements of those who have documented Australian children's publishing 'output' so assiduously - Maurice Saxby's groundbreaking histories (1969, 1971, 1993) and Marcie Muir and Kerry White's comprehensive bibliographical tools (1982, 1992). Contrary to those endeavours, though, this study'goes back-stage' to the area where the publishing 'action' happens. Consequently it does not provide a comprehensive overview of every publication or author; it does not cover every genre and style. Rather it is concerned to document the activities of publishers which have produced books for children in Australia, in brief, and to isolate key examples of publishing enterprises within this coverage which represent 'case studies' of the different types of companies which have played a successful part in publishing development. This work is intended to be of interest not simply to either children's literature or Australian literature theorists, but to book historians, and to media, cultural studies and entertainment industry theorists. It was based on a belief that cultural histories of this nature are valuable in tracking the growth of a society and also in demonstrating that creative endeavours are never simply that. They are the result of a complex interweaving of a variety of factors, and that therefore artists approach creativity 'at their peril' without first understanding something of the world into which they are entrusting their creations. Consequently there were several objectives in the study which were to: 1. contextualize Australian children's publishing within a history of children's publishing internationally, with particular reference to early commercial beginnings in Britain and to British Empire developments, but also with appropriate reference to growth in the USA; 2. contextualize Australian children's publishing within the broader range and expansion of the book publishing industry in Australia, particularly the latter's economic growth and cultural influence since WWII, but also including an overview of foundational developments from the nineteenth century; 3. contextualize Australian children's publishing within social, educational and cultural developments, such as the development of education programs, the expansion of public and school libraries, the changes in government policy related to children and books, shifting social attitudes towards the child, and the impact of entertainment and media industries; 4. examine the roles played by various individuals, especially publishers, managers, editors, marketers, booksellers, librarians, teachers and professional commentators in the development of the Australian children's publishing industry. Their roles will be analysed in the context of various industry-particular questions such as a) the oft-remarked upon tensions that exist in publishing, between for example, 'craft-like' and bureaucratic structures; b) the interplay between 'structure and agency' in the industry; c) the shift from a 'library market' to a 'mass market' under such influences as globalization and media; d) whether publishing is necessarily more 'Australian' if it is done by independent, rather than multinational companies; and e) the influence that the 'internal' structure of publishing has had on its development, e.g. the isolation of children's publishing from the mainstream, the predominance of women as agents in its development, and so on; 5. finally, discuss the implications of globalization since the 1970s, and posit future directions in the production, marketing and consumption of children's properties. This study examines the industry from a critical perspective relying not on the evaluation of quality as opposed to mass market literature, but viewing all forms of trade literature for children as part of a dynamic whole. It therefore traces the origins of publishing in English-language countries briefly first before examining the Australian situation, and shows that from the very beginning, publications for children have been the products of both altruistic and profit-driven objectives. It concentrates on the post-WWII period, on certain key enterprises and trends which have been particularly successful, suggesting that those publishing houses and those individuals within them who 'balance' commerce and culture with the most skill, are those who succeed in making 'good' books readily accessible to those for whom they have been created. This thesis celebrates the fact that children's publishers have always demonstrated an admirable combination of opportunism and idealism, the two characteristics which are essential to a successful publishing company. Australia has been fortunate in rearing several enterprising individuals whose early publishing attempts laid the ground for the currently successful houses. Without E.W. Cole, William Steele at Ward, Lock and Co., Frank Eyre at Oxford University Press, Andrew Fabinyi at Cheshire, Barbara Ker Wilson at Angus & Robertson, Anne Bower Ingram at William Collins, the later successes of key individuals at Penguin Books Australia, Scholastic Australia, Allen & Unwin, Lothian Books and Omnibus Books and countless others may not have been planted in such fertile ground. This study predicts that the future of Australian children's publishing lies in the recognition of the essential role played by commercial instincts in shaping cultural endeavours.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/195475 |
| Date | January 2005 |
| Creators | Sheahan-Bright, Robyn, n/a |
| Publisher | Griffith University. School of Arts |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | http://www.gu.edu.au/disclaimer.html), Copyright Robyn Sheahan-Bright |
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